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Ashes to Ashes (David Bowie song)
"Ashes to Ashes" is a song by David Bowie, released in 1980. It made No. 1 in the UK and was the first cut from the Scary Monsters (And Super Creeps) album, also a No. 1 hit. As well as its musical qualities, it is noted for its innovative video, directed by Bowie and David Mallet, which at the time became the most expensive music video ever made. The lyrics revisit Bowie's Major Tom character from 1969's "Space Oddity" in a darker theme, which he referenced once again in 1995 with "Hallo Spaceboy". The song's original title was "People Are Turning to Gold."1 Interviewed in 1980, Bowie described the song as a "nursery rhyme": "It's very much a 1980s nursery rhyme. I think 1980s nursery rhymes will have a lot to do with the 1880s/1890s nursery rhymes which are all rather horrid and had little boys with their ears being cut off and stuff like that".2 Years later, Bowie said that with "Ashes to Ashes" he was "wrapping up the seventies really" for himself, which "seemed a good enough epitaph for it".3 AllMusic critic Dave Thompson described the track and its accompanying music video as "a very deliberate acknowledgement of the then-burgeoning new romantic scene."4 Contents 1 Music and lyrics 2 Release 3 Music video 4 Track listing 5 Production credits 6 Charts 7 Alternative versions 8 Live versions 9 Other releases 10 Cover versions 11 Cultural references 12 References 13 External links Music and lyrics "Ashes to Ashes" is a new wave song.5 It is notable for its delicate synthetic string sound, counterpointed by hard-edged funk bass, and its complex vocal layering. Its choir-like textures were created by guitarist Chuck Hammer with four multi-tracked guitar synthesizers, each playing opposing chord inversions; this was underpinned by Bowie's dead-pan, chanted background voices.6 Melancholic and introspective, "Ashes to Ashes" featured Bowie's reinterpretation of "a guy that's been in such an early song", namely Major Tom from his first hit in 1969, "Space Oddity". Described as "containing more messages per second" than any single released in 1980,7 the song also included plaintive reflections on the singer's moral and artistic journey: I've never done good thingsI've never done bad thingsI never did anything out of the blue Instead of a hippie astronaut who casually slips the bonds of a crass and material world to journey beyond the stars, the song describes Major Tom as a "junkie, strung out in heaven's high, hitting an all-time low". This lyric was interpreted as a play on the title of Bowie's 1977 album Low, which charted his withdrawal inwards following his drug excesses in America a short time before, another reversal of Major Tom's original withdrawal "outwards" or towards space.7 The final lines, "My mother said, to get things done, you'd better not mess with Major Tom", have been compared to the verse from a nursery rhyme:8 My mother saidThat I never shouldPlay with the gypsies in the wood Bowie himself said in an interview with NME shortly after the single's release, "It really is an ode to childhood, if you like, a popular nursery rhyme. It's about space men becoming junkies (laughs)."9 Release "Ashes to Ashes" hit No. 4 in the UK Singles Chart in its first week of release, rising to No. 1 a week later, making it Bowie's fastest-selling single to that point in time.8 It was issued in three different sleeves, the first 100,000 copies including one of four sets of stamps, all featuring Bowie in the Pierrot outfit he wore in the video.10 The B-side, "Move On", was a track lifted from his previous album, Lodger (1979). The US release had "It's No Game (No. 1)". The single peaked at No. 101 in America. Music video Solarised colour in the music video The music video for "Ashes to Ashes" was one of the most iconic of the 1980s. With production costing £250,000 ($500,000), it was at the time the most expensive music video ever made and remains one of the most expensive of all time.8 It incorporated scenes both in solarised colour and in stark black-and-white and was filmed in multiple locations. The video featured Bowie in the gaudy Pierrot costume that became the dominant visual representation of his Scary Monsters phase. Also appearing were Steve Strange and other members of the London Blitz scene, including Judith Frankland who had designed clothes for Strange's Visage videos11 and Darla Jane Gilroy, forerunners of (later participants in) the New Romantic movement that was heavily influenced by Bowie's music and image.812 The complexity and high production cost of "Ashes to Ashes" makes it one of the most significant in the evolution of the music video. Bowie described the shot of himself and the Blitz Kids marching towards the camera in front of a bulldozer as symbolising "oncoming violence".13 Although it appears that two of the Blitz Kids bow at intervals, they were actually trying to pull their gowns away from the bulldozer in an effort to avoid them getting caught.12 Scenes of the singer in a space suit—which suggested a hospital life-support system—and others showing him locked in what appeared to be a padded room, made reference to both Major Tom and to Bowie's new, rueful interpretation of him. Contrary to popular belief, the elderly woman lecturing Bowie at the end of the clip was not his real mother.14 Record Mirror readers voted "Ashes to Ashes" and Bowie's next single, "Fashion", the best music videos of 1980.15 The iconic video was filmed at Pett Level, East Sussex, half way between Hastings and Rye. A bulldozer is still in action every autumn and winter there, moving shingle about (brought from Rye Harbor) to protect the sea wall defenses. Track listing 1."Ashes to Ashes" (Bowie) – 3:34 2."Move On" (Bowie) – 3:16 Production credits Producers: Tony Visconti David Bowie Musicians: David Bowie: Vocals, keyboards Chuck Hammer: Roland GR500 guitar synthesizer Carlos Alomar: Guitar Andy Clark – synthesiser Roy Bittan: Piano George Murray: Bass Dennis Davis: Drums Charts Chart (1980-1981) Peak position Australia (Kent Music Report)16 3 Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)17 6 Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)18 15 Canadian RPM Top Singles19 35 France (SNEP)20 12 Germany (Official German Charts)21 9 Irish Singles Chart22 4 Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)23 11 Netherlands (Single Top 100)24 15 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)25 6 Norway (VG-lista)26 3 Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)27 6 Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)28 11 UK (Official Charts Company)29 1 U.S. Billboard Hot 100 101 U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Play30 21 U.S. Cash Box 79 Alternative versions There have long been rumours of an extended unreleased version of the song, allegedly some 13 minutes long and featuring additional verses, a longer fade-out and a synthesizer solo.31 A 12:55 version that appeared on the bootleg From a Phoenix... The Ashes Shall Rise was a fake, repeating the song's instrumental breaks to achieve its additional length.32 Similarly, an 11:44 version on bootleg albums such as Glamour, Vampires of the Human Flesh and Monsters to Ashes was again nothing more than the original track with segments repeated and looped. Live versions The song has been played on several Bowie tours, including the Serious Moonlight, Sound+Vision, Heathen, and A Reality Tour tours.31 A live performance filmed on 12 September 1983 was included on Serious Moonlight (1983 film). A live recording from a special performance at the BBC Radio Theatre, London, on 27 June 2000 was released on the bonus disc that accompanied the first releases of the Bowie at the Beeb album. A live recording from A Reality Tour, recorded in Dublin in November 2003, is included on the A Reality Tour DVD and the A Reality Tour album. Other releases To promote the single in August 1980, a so-called medley of "Space Oddity" and "Ashes to Ashes", called "The Continuing Story of Major Tom", was released on 12" in the US.10 However, this medley was simply "Space Oddity" cross-fading into the 7" single edit of "Ashes to Ashes". The promo's B-side was the full-length album version of "Ashes to Ashes". It has appeared on the following Bowie compilations: Changestwobowie (1981) – single edit Golden Years (1983) – album version Fame and Fashion (1984) – album version Sound + Vision (1989) – album version ChangesBowie (1990) – album version The Singles Collection (1993) – album version Best of Bowie (2002) – single edit The Platinum Collection (2006) – single edit The Best of David Bowie 1980/1987 (2007) – single edit Nothing Has Changed (2014) – single edit Cover versions A Perfect Circle – Performed the song on 2001 and 2010 tours, with the latter version released on live box set Stone and Echo (2013) Bic Runga – Live recording Boise Cover Band (feat. Doug Martsch) - Unoriginal Artists (2003) Bojan Z – Xenophonia (2006) Dana International – Sampled in her "Gotta Move On" song (2002) Danny Michel – Loving the Alien: Danny Michel Sings the Songs of David Bowie (2004) Happy Rhodes – Rhode Songs (1993) Hussey-Regan - Curios (2011) jacksoul – mySOUL (2006) Jeniferever – Repetition Bowie (2007) Keane – Tribute to "Ashes to Ashes" with the song "Better Than This" from the album Perfect Symmetry (2008) Lassigue Bendthaus – Pop Artificielle (1998) Mick Karn – We Were So Turned On: A Tribute to David Bowie (2010) Northern Kings – Reborn (2007) with lead vocals by Tony Kakko Samantha Mumba – Sampled in her "Body II Body" single (2000) Sneaker Pimps – ICA Home Taping Cover Set (2000) Something for Kate – Live recording released on B-sides compilation CD Sunna – Two Minute Terror (2009) Tao Of Sound – Ronin (2013) with vocals by Sharlotte Gibson33 Tears for Fears – Released on the albums Ruby Trax, Saturnine Martial & Lunatic and David Bowie Songbook The String Quartet – BowieMania: Mania, une Collection Obsessionelle de Beatrice Ardisson (2007) Tripod – Live version combined with "Space Oddity" (2006) Warpaint – We Were So Turned On: A Tribute to David Bowie (2010) Cultural references For the 2008 sequel to their 2006 BBC TV series Life on Mars, the writing team of Matthew Graham and Ashley Pharoah decided to transplant the characters from 1973 to 1981, and chose the title Ashes to Ashes because they thought of it as "that year's big Bowie track".34 They also borrowed the famous Pierrot iconography from the video of the Bowie single as part of the programme's visual design.35 In the first series's finale, a car bomb goes off at the line "One flash of light". In The Young Ones episode "Nasty", a drunken vicar (Terry Jones) is at a grave site and begins an Anglican burial service by saying "Ashes to Ashes...", only to have Rick (Rik Mayall) interrupt him by replying, "Funk to funky, we all known Major Tom's a junkie." The vicar responds by headbutting Rick into the open grave. References 1.Jump up ^ David Currie, ed. (1985). David Bowie: The Starzone Interviews. England: Omnibus Press. ISBN 0-7119-0685-8. 2.Jump up ^ "David Bowie - Scary Monsters Interview, PART 1 (12" Promo, 1980)". YouTube. Retrieved 2014-03-29. 3.Jump up ^ Pegg 2011, p. 29. 4.Jump up ^ Thompson, Dave. "David Bowie - Ashes to Ashes". AllMusic. Retrieved February 6, 2016. 5.Jump up ^ Comer, M. Tye (15 May 2000). "Pop Artificielle - LB". CMJ 62 (666). 6.Jump up ^ Chris Welch (1999). David Bowie: We Could Be Heroes: p.136 7.^ Jump up to: a b Roy Carr & Charles Shaar Murray (1981). Bowie: An Illustrated Record: pp.109–116 8.^ Jump up to: a b c d David Buckley (1999). Strange Fascination – David Bowie: The Definitive Story: pp.366–369 9.Jump up ^ Angus MacKinnon (1980). "The Future Isn't What It Used to Be". NME (13 September 1980): p.37 10.^ Jump up to: a b Scary Monsters at BowieGoldenYears 11.Jump up ^ "Balenciaga Hears The Sound of Music", The Swelle Life, 22 February 2011 12.^ Jump up to: a b Steve Strange at The Blitz Kids 13.Jump up ^ Steve Malins (2007). "Meeting the New Romantics", MOJO 60 Years of Bowie: p.78 14.Jump up ^ Pegg 2011, p. 30. 15.Jump up ^ Nicholas Pegg (2000). Op Cit: pp.75–76 16.Jump up ^ Danyel Smith, ed. (1980). Billboard 25 october 1980. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved 24 June 2013. 17.Jump up ^ "Austriancharts.at – David Bowie – Ashes To Ashes" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. 18.Jump up ^ "Ultratop.be – David Bowie – Ashes To Ashes" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. 19.Jump up ^ "Ashes to ashes in Canadian Top Singles Chart". Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 24 June 2013. 20.Jump up ^ "Ashes to ashes in French Chart" (in French). Dominic DURAND / InfoDisc. 24 June 2013. Retrieved 24 June 2013. You have to use the index at the top of the page and search "David Bowie" 21.Jump up ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – David Bowie – Ashes To Ashes". GfK Entertainment Charts. 22.Jump up ^ "Ashes to ashes in Irish Chart". IRMA. Retrieved 24 June 2013. 3rd result when searching "Ashes to ashes" 23.Jump up ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – David Bowie search results" (in Dutch) Dutch Top 40. 24.Jump up ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – David Bowie – Ashes To Ashes" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. 25.Jump up ^ "Charts.org.nz – David Bowie – Ashes To Ashes". Top 40 Singles. 26.Jump up ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – David Bowie – Ashes To Ashes". VG-lista. 27.Jump up ^ "Swedishcharts.com – David Bowie – Ashes To Ashes". Singles Top 100. 28.Jump up ^ "Swisscharts.com – David Bowie – Ashes To Ashes". Swiss Singles Chart. 29.Jump up ^ "1980 Top 40 Official UK Singles Archive - 23rd August 1980". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 24 June 2013. 30.Jump up ^ "Scary Monsters awards on Allmusic". Allmusic. Retrieved 24 June 2013. 31.^ Jump up to: a b Pegg 2011, p. 31. 32.Jump up ^ "Ashes to Ashes" at Illustrated db Discography 33.Jump up ^ Ronin at AllMusic 34.Jump up ^ "Life after Mars", The Guardian, 7 January 2008 35.Jump up ^ "Back in the Day when PC meant Copper", David Belcher, The Herald (Glasgow), 8 February 2008 BibliographyPegg, Nicholas (2011). The Complete David Bowie (6th ed.). London: Titan Books. ISBN 9780857682901. External links Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics Preceded by "The Winner Takes It All" by ABBA UK number one single 23 August 1980 – 5 September 1980 Succeeded by "Start!" by The Jam Category:UK Singles Chart number-one singles Category:1980 singles Category:David Bowie songs Category:Songs written by David Bowie Category:Song recordings produced by David Bowie Category:Song recordings produced by Tony Visconti Category:Sequel songs Category:1980 songs Category:RCA Records singles Category:New wave songs